A long time genealogist, a pioneer in using the Internet to support researchers, and a long time County Coordinator for Taney County Missouri, I will commit to enthusiastically represent all of the Southwest/South Central Region's coordinators as one of their voices on the Advisory Board during the coming two years. I believe that my research and technical experience, my long term USGenWeb involvement and my temperment can be of value to the project as a Board member. I greatly appreciate the fabulous resources that USGenWeb has provided to me and other genealogists over the years and would enjoy giving something back by representing you on the Advisory Board.

I consider it a privilege to be a member of USGenWeb and an honor to have been nominated for this responsibility. Whether or not I am selected by my peers during this election, I assure you that I am committed to continual improvement of the project for the benefit of researchers everywhere. While I believe that I have much in the way of talent, experience, and maturity to bring to this position, I honestly admit that I do not know if I am the best choice for this particular position during this election cycle. I trust you, my fellow volunteers in USGenWeb, to make the correct choice from among the candidates available. I hope you will ask questions and evaluate the statements that all of us provide; then make a carefully considered selection with your votes. I also hope that you will encourage your fellow volunteers to do the same so that all of those selected will be the choice of the project, and not just the selection of a few. If I am elected, I assure you that there is mutual respect and a good relationship between me and the other representatives of this region.

Up front, I admit to being somewhat of a "geek" who likes to try out and apply new technical facilities in support of genealogists. I love the environment of USGenWeb which allows each coordinator to try out and implement the look, the structure, and the services they feel will best support their users. I've definitely tried some things along the way that didn't work. I've also been introducted to many new ideas by innovative fellow coordinators and applied them to my own sites. And that is half the fun, for me.

Some of My Guiding Principles:

If elected, I intend to act in accordance with the following principles when performing my official duties on the Advisory Board:

• If a proposal helps the County and other Local Coordinators better provide resources and assistance to genealogists, I will support it and vote yes.
• If I believe a proposal raises obstacles to the sort of creativity and service these Coordinators are trying to offer, I will oppose it and vote no.
• If a proposal isn't germane to the work of the Local Coordinators, I will encourage the Board not to expend time on that proposal.
• I will proactively seek to learn of the attitudes and needs of all project members, even those who spend all of their available time working on local websites and don't allocate any time for "politics" rather than just listening to those who chose to speak out.
• I will treat all project members with respect and will promote the same attitude among other board and project members.
• I won't necessarily always make my Board decisions based on what the majority of those I hear from say. I will listen carefully to them, but also recognize that the silent majority also deserve representation. I will attempt to act for the overall benefit of the project, applying my wisdom and experience as well as considering the input of the more vocal minority who speak up on each issue.

In my opinion, our County and other Local Coordinators are the heart of the USGenWeb project. All other project participants should be focused on helping these folks on the front line deliver information and assistance to those who are researching their ancestry.

My background:

• A networking and computer professional, I currently work for Timpanogos Technologies, which supports school districts nationwide in their effective use of technology
• A father of 7 and grandfather of 12 and am married to a sweetheart (Anna) who shares my passion for genealogy (she has a BS degree in Family History Research)
• Have spoken and taught workshops at several national genealogical conferences on research, computers, and the Internet - with Anna I teach several local classes each year focused on "getting started" with genealogy and computers
• During 40+ years of genealogical research, I have been able to work in many county, state, provincial and national archives
• A Fellow of the National Genealogical Society (FNGS, one of just 27 nationwide) and served as the founding or early webmaster for several national organizations
• County Coordinator for Taney County in Missouri, Grainger County in Tennessee, Teton County in Idaho and Scott County in Illinois.
• Newly appointed coordinator in the FGS Project for Idaho, Utah, and Montana.
• Live and work a comfortable drive from the LDS Family History Library in Salt Lake City and make use of it for both my personal research and for the benefit of the counties I host for USGenWeb
• Enjoy fishing, backpacking, hiking, camping, star viewing, exploring the outdoors, visiting and learning about places that are important to my family's and country's history - especially with my family
• LOVE old books (reading copies) and reading science fiction and history
• My household is a large and unusual (for our times) multi-generational one that includes two grandchildren (high school), a son who is just finishing college, a spouse, a daughter-in-law, and four cats. Yes, it has been referred to as a "zoo" but it's lots of fun. BUT I'm about to become an empty nester for the first time, and that will be even MORE fun.
• For more details about my genealogical experience, see my genealogical resume addendum (A PDF using Acrobat Reader).
• For more details about my technical experience, see my technical resume addendum (A PDF using Acrobat Reader).

If you'd like to know a little more about me, check out my personal website at www.saintclair.org. If you have any questions for me, send them to genweb@saintclair.orgor ask on the SW Region Mailing List.